Phenomenon
Description:
An affliction that only seems to affect sophonts of significant metallic construction, the filigree virus is nonetheless a serious condition that should be curtailed as quickly as possible (if for no other reason than to prevent mutations that may allow it to cross the synthetic/organic barrier).
The most common method by which the infection spreads is through metallic Wonders covered in oddly ornate filigree etchings, as well as filigree wire of gold, blue tungsten, or palladium. (it should be noted, however, that this list is not exclusive—there have been reports of filigree composed of metals as common as steel or copper, and as esoteric as mirrorichalcum and hihi'irokane.)
This filigree is no mere ostentation, however, but a creeping doom that infests metallic sophonts, alternately excising fractal sections from their outermost layers and applying filigree wire (typically the same types as were found on the initial transmission vector) from an unknown source.
If allowed to proceed unchecked, the virus will eventually infect every metallic part of the sophont, eventually converting them into a fragile (if valuable) mesh liable to collapse at the slightest touch.
Quirks:
Potential Virus Origins
Scholars (both organic and digital) are undecided as to the definitive source of the filigree virus. Information recovered from structures beneath the fog-river of the Reach suggest it was originally created as a weapon in a war against sapient machines bent on global domination, while mindspikes from the Market of the Dead indicate its origins as an experimental form of transformational art grown beyond its programming.
No matter its beginnings, all who study it agree that the virus is unable to begin its infection without a deliberate interaction between the initial infested Wonder and a sapient being of sufficient metallic physicality. Numerous proposals for further study have been put forth by scholarly organizations to learn more about the virus (as well as to continue research into a possible cure), but as the initial vector Wonder crumbles almost immediately after passing on the virus, efforts so far have been fruitless.
How are Outbreaks Handled?
How seriously the filigree virus is taken is largely dependent on the local attitude towards non-organic sophonts. Areas with large populations of robotic or cybernetic inhabitants, such as the City of Three Selves, rightfully treat the issue as seriously as plague or other major crisis.
Opinions differ in areas where Wonders and sapient machines are viewed less benevolently, however. Some consider the filigree virus a nuisance only in that it can upset trade (for obvious reasons, Gervans and the telepresence drones of the Eukeynes Consolidation are wary of areas suffering from filigree virus outbreaks). Those of a more organic-supremacist view (such as the infamous “Nightragers”) may even welcome such infections, seeking to “cast down over-proud machines” and “restore the rightful place” of unaugmented sophonts at the top of the power structure.
Luckily, this latter view is but a vocal minority in most places, and open affiliation with the Nightrager movement is grounds for exile in most civilized lands.
Adventure Hooks:
Doctor, or Deceiver?
The PCs get hired to secretly transport a secure vial of the virus to a researcher who’s trying to work on a cure. They need to be careful, though, because there are reports that Nightragers (organic supremacists) that may try to “relieve” them of their cargo and use it to harm cybernetic sophonts. On their journey, the PCs are found out by a pair of mercenaries bearing organic supremacist marks, but before the fighting can begin, they explain that their client has lied to them.
According to the mercenaries, their client is doing research on the filigree virus—that much of the story is true—but the client has the means to change its transmission vector so that it no longer requires physical contact and can spread through data uplinks alone. The client plans to sell the upgraded virus to a local Nightrager cell, and it’s likely they’ll unleash it at the upcoming the Linking of Minds festival.
Question is, who’s telling the truth: the client or the mercenaries?
Knowledge Demands Sacrifice
Pellaway Un’gota, a famed explorer and researcher par excellence, has been stricken with the filigree virus while exploring a new chamber in the Cube of Doors, and time is running out—Un’Gota’s seven limbs and primary life support systems are all mechanical. The effects of the virus will likely be fatal if not treated soon, but Un’gota refuses to leave the newly discovered chamber, or more specifically, the skeletal frame of delicate black porcelain shot through with delicate threads of copper, gold, and blue tungsten floating at the center of the chamber.
When the PCs arrive to help, they learn that Un’Gota came down with the virus after touching the frame, and what’s more, the journal found on the researcher’s person suggests this was on purpose. The last few pages of the journal are filled with scribbles in Un’gota’s handwriting, phrases like “Only the Adorned may travel along the Tripartite Way” and “virus... key... safe?... irrelevant... must bring them back.”
There’s almost always a method to Un’gota’s madness (there’s a reason few explorers are as old or as famous), and it is odd that the frame is still standing (normally the initial vector collapses after spreading the virus), but the question remains: is the infected frame actually more than it appears, or has the virus merely addled Un’gota’s wits?
Fragility, Beauty, and Time
Recently, outbreaks of the filigree virus have been much more common than usual, and no one can seem to figure out why. No matter the reason, the Glorious Preserver Society has announced that its members will open their entropic arresters to anyone afflicted with the virus. Normally used for incredibly fragile relics, the arresters are able to greatly slow entropy within a specific area, essentially freezing its contents in time. While these devices won’t cure the virus, they will prevent its progression, buying the infected time until a cure can be discovered.
The PCs enter the picture when someone contacts them about the disappearance of a mutual friend. Apparently, before said acquaintance went missing, they were trying to prove a rumor that the reason so many outbreaks of the virus were happening was the fault of the Society itself, and that the only reason the Glorious Preservers were giving “public access” to their arrestors was to satisfy a grotesque urge to display the infected sophonts like sculptures.
As one might expect, the Society’s board (all wealthy and powerful individuals) denies these allegations in their entirety, but when the PCs’ “missing” friend winds up in an arrestor, half-covered in creeping strands of filigree, the story sounds a bit more plausible...
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